Richard Book is Innocent (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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tweedandtinsel2010-12-04 05:03 pm
oxfordtweed) wrote in tweedandtinsel2010-12-04 05:03 pm
Lamp Light (3/10)
Title: Lamp Light
Fandom: Hot Fuzz
Character/s: Like in the film
Word Count (chapter/total): 5,300 / 47,100
Rating: NC-17
Summary/Warnings: A bit more with Travis and Janine.
Always making noises. Regular noises would be acceptable. Noises like the shuffling of papers or a printer going. Even noises like a telephone conversation to mum would be acceptable. But noises like this were not acceptable. There is absolutely, under no circumstances, any reason for the noises that happened in the courthouse that now also doubled as a police station. Noises like shouting and things being slammed against walls and dropped on the floor. With each new noise, the pressure and pain ringing in Nicholas' skull only amplified, making him physically nauseas. Finally, when he could stand no more, he got up from his desk and slowly walked to his office door, pulling it open slowly. He leaned out into the short hall, not immediately seeing the source of the noises. They were definitely coming from the break room. Walking slowly, he made his way to the noises, throwing open the door to the break room. The sudden quick motion only made him feel even more ill, causing him to have to stop and put a bit of pressure on his head with his fingers. After a few moments, it became clear that nobody had noticed him enter, so he had to take matters into his own hands.
"Shut the fuck up!" he shouted over the din.
Andrew had Tony both froze, Tony stuck in a vicious headlock.
"Get 'im offa me!" Tony pleaded.
Andrew jerked Tony to the left before finally letting up.
"There's no excuse for this!" Nicholas shouted at the officers. "You're grown men. You're supposed to be representatives of the community. Instead, you're in here faffing about and wasting time. Don't you have work to do?"
"Fuck, Nick," Andrew said, standing upright and shoving Tony away. "Lighten up, would you?"
"No, I will not!" Nicholas rubbed his temples again, his eyes closed tightly. "Go down to the station and check progress. Both of you." He turned round and spotted Andy, possibly asleep with his feet up on a desk, and a cigarette hanging between his lips. Inhaling deeply, Nicholas stomped up to the detective and snatched the cigarette from him, and tossing it into a cup of tea. "I've told you both a hundred fucking times that there is to be no smoking in the building!" He pushed the back of Andy's chair, jarring him awake as he stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him. He stopped out in the hall, his hands pressed tightly against the sides of his head. After taking a few deep breaths, he managed to make his way to his office, turning out the lights. He walked slowly to the window, drawing the shades as best he could before turning off his computer monitor. Folding his arms over the desk, he put his head down, groaning lightly.
Just breathe.
Calm down and breathe.
Not lifting his head, he felt around for the second drawer in his desk, pulling it slowly open. He gingerly felt around the contents, eventually finding a small bottle of Rizatriptan. He looked up from his desk long enough to get the bottle open and fished one of the tablets out, swallowing it dry. Snapping the lid shut, he tried to drop it back into his desk drawer but missed, gently resting his head back down on the desk.
"He can't just come in here and yell at us like that," Andrew snapped, throwing a paper cup against the wall. "Who the fuck's he think he is?"
"Your inspector?" Tony ventured cautiously.
Andrew growled as he turned away from the sergeant. "We're all under a lot of pressure, here," he said. "He acts like he's the only fucking one does any work round here."
"I ain't going outside to smoke," Andy said simply. "What, and get rained on all fucking day?"
"I'm going in there right now and telling him what's what," Andrew said. "I can tell him exactly what the progress at the station is. Fuck all none."
Tony frowned and shifted slightly as he watched Andrew throw the door open and step out to the hall. He deliberately slammed the door shut behind himself and stomped down the hall to the office Nicholas had made his own. At first, he meant to pound loudly on the door, but then he reconsidered that notion. Even beating the door in would still count as knocking first, so Andrew decided he'd just let himself in. He threw the door open, completely ready to yell and point menacingly and maybe even light up a fag, but had been completely thrown at the lights being off.
"Nick?" he called hesitantly.
"Shut up, go away, and shut the door," Nicholas groaned quietly.
Andrew looked around for the inspector, finding no sign of the man anywhere in the office. It wasn't until he was ready to do what the disembodied voice had told him that he noticed a pair of immaculately shined shoes underneath the desk. Andrew quietly closed the door, stepping up close to the desk. "Nick?" he said again. Stepping round to the back of the desk, he peered underneath it, finding Nicholas curled up on the floor with his eyes closed tightly. "Shit," he said quietly. He noticed the small bottle on the floor near Nicholas' chair, and using his moderately trained detective skills to put two and two together to get five. He picked up the bottle and set it on the desk before getting down to his knees. "Come on, Nick," he said, reaching under the desk.
"Go away," Nicholas repeated.
"Sorry," Andrew said, pulling lightly on Nicholas' arm. Despite his protests, Nicholas got up from the floor. "Come on," Andrew continued. "I'm taking you home."
"Got work to do," Nicholas said.
"And it ain't getting done with you under there, either," he said. "Might as well go home and go to bed." He made sure Nicholas wasn't going to sick all over the floor once he got to his feet, and left him in the office while he walked down to the break room. He slowly pushed the door open, poking his head in.
"You tell that bastard what's what?" Andy asked bitterly.
"Go down to the station with Tony," Andrew said. "I've got to take care of something."
"What could you possibly have to take care of all of a sudden?" Andy demanded.
"None of your fucking business," Andrew snapped. "I'm your DS, now fucking do what I said."
Andy scowled at him as he shut the door before making his way back to Nicholas' office, finding the inspector resting with his head on his desk. "Come on, Nick," he said lightly, helping Nicholas up. "Going home."
"Got work," Nicholas repeated.
"I'll take care of it," Andrew promised. "Let's go." He led Nicholas out to his old Volks Wagen, helping him get settled into the passenger seat. Climbing into the driver's seat, Andrew adjusted the volume knob on his stereo, making sure it didn't blast them out when he turned the ignition. The car started easily, and he backed out of the space, starting on the quick drive to Nicholas' cottage. He was surprised to find Danny's new Mini parked outside. Doing his best to not wonder what on god's green earth Danny was doing at Nicholas' place during the day, he helped the inspector out of the car, and inside, finding Danny making a sandwich in the kitchen.
"Wot's going on?" Danny asked, looking up at the pair.
"Could ask you the same thing," Andrew said, watching Nicholas shuffle back to his bedroom.
"I came here for lunch so I didn't have to go up the steps at my place," Danny said simply. "What's going on with Nick?"
Andrew walked into the kitchen and took a slice of turkey from the package on the counter. "I think he went back to work too early," he said. "Found him sick under his desk."
Danny blinked at Andrew. "He told me he weren't havin' headaches no more," he said.
Andrew leaned up against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. "Wasn't aware he had an issue with them until today," he said. "That what his prescription's for?"
Danny nodded. "He told you?" he asked.
Andrew shook his head. "Found the bottle on the floor in his office." The officers stood silent for a few moments before Andrew finally started making his way toward the front door. "Listen, Nick had some reports he was working on today. I'm gonna take care of those for him today, if he asks."
Danny nodded again. "He'd appreciate that," he agreed. "Be sure to send him a copy in his email. He likes to keep all of them for some reason."
"Right." Andrew nodded and let himself out, leaving Danny to finish making his lunch. Danny cleaned up after himself and put the kettle on the stove, figuring Nicholas might like some tea. He took his sandwich into the living room and settled down on the sofa. He could hear Nicholas moving around in the bedroom, changing out of his uniform and getting into bed. For several moments, Danny considered turning on the telly, but decided against it, on the very real chance that even the flashing lights from the screen would upset Nicholas. Instead, he ate his lunch in silence, until the kettle on the stove started to whistle. Danny got up as quickly as possible and took it off the stove, making up a cup for each of them; Danny's mug with four sugars Nicholas' with one. He took the cup into Nicholas' bedroom, setting it lightly down on the inspector's night stand.
"Thought you might want some," he said lightly when he noticed Nicholas was awake. "How you feel?"
"Like I'm gonna die," Nicholas said simply.
Danny frowned and leaned over the bed, pulling shut the shades. "Try to get some sleep," he said, bending down and lightly kissing Nicholas on the forehead. He left the tea on the night stand and left the room, quietly closing the door behind himself. Checking his watch, he saw that he had just barely enough time to get back to the courthouse before being late; not that anyone was keeping track. He made sure all the lights in the cottage were out and let himself out, making sure that the doors were locked.
"Inspector, do you remember what time it was when you stopped to get petrol?"
Nicholas thought for a moment. "No, I don't," he said. "I'm sorry. It was before dawn, though. I do remember that."
"You weren't wearing a watch?" the attorney asked.
"No, I was," Nicholas said. "But I didn't think to check what the time was. I wasn't exactly working on a schedule."
"Okay," the attorney said slowly. "Do you remember where you stopped off?"
"It was in Bufford Abbey," Nicholas said. "No, wait. It was in Heston." Nicholas shifted in his seat. He'd done these things dozens of times before. Why should this one be any different? And why did this guy make him so nervous?
"Was it Bufford Abbey, or was it Heston?" the attorney asked. "There's a considerable distance between the two."
"It was Heston," Nicholas said.
"Are you certain, Inspector?"
Nicholas paused a moment. "Yes," he said. He bit his lip and inhaled deeply. Just calm down and concentrate.
"You weren't seen again in Sandford until eight in the morning," the attorney said. "And if you say you left Sandford 'around two-ish', that's a lot of time unaccounted for. "How did you know where to find everybody if you'd been gone for so long?"
"It's a small town," Nicholas pointed out. "And the Village of the Year judges were there. Everyone was on the high street."
The attorney looked at Nicholas for a few moments. "And what of the other officers?" he asked.
"They were at the station," Nicholas said simply. "I'm sorry, what does any of this have to do with anything?"
The judge looked down at Nicholas. "I'd like to know the same thing, Mr. Baker."
The attorney took a few steps closer to the stand. "I'm simply trying to show that Inspector Angel was gone for an extended amount of time," he said. "That's a lot of time during which he may not have had the opportunity to get the full story or series of events."
"What's not to get?" Nicholas asked. "There was a street full of people shooting at me."
"Earlier you said that, quote, 'everyone was on the high street'," Mr. Baker said. "Are you to imply that 'everyone' then was shooting at you, since 'a street full of people' were shooting at you."
Nicholas shook his head. "No," he insisted. "I...That's not..."
"That's enough, Mr. Baker," the judge said finally. "Inspector, you can step down."
Nicholas nodded. "Thank you," he said. He made his way back out to the hall, finding Travis waiting for him.
"How'd it go?" he asked.
Nicholas leaned his head against Travis' shoulder. Fuck image. "I'd have sworn I was the one on trial in there," he said.
Travis shook his head, placing his hand on Nicholas' shoulder. "Come on," he said. "Let's go home."
He led Nicholas down the hall and outside. As they walked to the bus stop, Nicholas slowly pulled his tie off, rolling it carefully before putting it in his pocket as Travis reached up and unfastened Nicholas' top button on his shirt. The bus pulled up to the curb in a fit of excellent timing, and the two men got on, Travis paying for both their fares. The ride home was quick, at least, and a good alternative to walking in occasional and sudden downpours.
Once upstairs in Travis' flat, Nicholas pulled his jacket off, hanging it on the hook next to his uniform jacket.
"You hungry?" Travis asked lightly, picking up the phone. "I'm thinking Chinese."
"Whatever you want," Nicholas responded dully, letting himself fall onto the sofa. Kicking off his shoes, he stretched out over the cushions and reached for the remote, forgetting that daytime telly in London was the same boring nonsense as daytime telly in Sandford. He watched David Dickson's technicolour glasses bounce around the screen while Travis placed his order on the phone, seemingly getting one of everything from the menu. Eventually, he hung up, and pushed Nicholas' feet off of the sofa.
"Just move right in," he said as Nicholas sat up. "Anything good on?"
Nicholas handed over the remote and leaned his head against Travis' shoulder. "Bargain Hunt, or some BBC special on boys with eating disorders," Nicholas answered flatly.
Travis considered this. "How old are the boys?" he asked.
"Twelve?"
Travis frowned and began flipping through channels, eventually settling on an afternoon news programme. The two of them sat together with a comfortable silence between them, Travis' fingers lightly tracing the contour of Nicholas' shoulder. "Lunch should be here soon," he said after a few minutes. "Got you some noodles."
"Thanks," Nicholas said quietly. He sighed lightly.
"How you doing?" Travis asked, looking down at him. "Do you need your pills?"
Nicholas shook his head. "No," he said. "Just tired."
Travis sighed lightly and gently stroked Nicholas' head. "Then we'll stay in tonight."
Danny stood on the platform, waiting eagerly for Nicholas to just hurry up and get off the fucking train already. When he did finally emerge from the crowd, Danny tried to bounce up and down, felt a sharp pull in his side, and leaned against the wall instead.
"You all right?" Nicholas asked, reaching out toward Danny.
"Yeah," Danny said, nodding. "Got too excited, is all." He forced a strained smile at Nicholas before leading the way to the car. Nicholas tossed his bag in the back seat and climbed into the passenger seat, watching as Danny slid into the car and started the ignition. "How was everything?" he asked, his voice sounding forced.
"I can't wait until it's all over with," Nicholas said. "They're just drawing this whole mess out longer than they should."
Danny nodded stiffly. "Right," he said. He hated talking about the trial, and thinking about all the people that were involved, and knew he shouldn't have asked. "That...guy you're staying with," he said slowly.
"Travis?" Nicholas filled in. "He's an old friend. What about him?"
Danny kept his eyes glued to the road. "I met him, and he seemed nice and all, but I know you two..."
Nicholas sighed and twisted slightly to look at Danny. "Yes," Nicholas said. "And I told you that. It was just something casual."
Danny chewed his lip. "Is it... still something casual?" he asked nervously.
"No." Nicholas said simply. "That was an agreement we made back when we were both PCs." He reached out and put a gentle hand on Danny's arm. "But if it makes you that uncomfortable, I'll start staying with my parents."
Danny glanced over at Nicholas. "You don't have to," he said.
"No, but you want me to," Nicholas said simply."
There was a brief silence. "Yeah." Danny was embarrassed to admit it, but Nicholas was right.
"Then I'll stay with my parents from now on." He smiled at Danny as he leaned back into his seat. "I'll need to stop by Travis' and get my stuff, though. Some things don't travel well, so I just left them there."
"Of course," Danny said, already feeling better about the situation. For everything else, he knew he could always trust Nicholas to not lie to him over something important. He'd caught him lying about other things, but they were small things, where the lies had made Danny feel better about still being in hospital.
"I'm gonna ask her out."
Travis looked up from his lunch, surprised to see Nicholas leaning over him. "Who?" he asked, swallowing quickly. "The girl from forensics?"
Nicholas nodded. "Yeah," Nicholas said. He sat down, plucking a piece of lettuce from Travis' plate. "Do you think I should?"
"I think you should get your own lunch," Travis said, pulling his plate away. "I thought you'd given up on women."
"No," Nicholas clarified. "I took a break from women after Darla. A man can only handle accusing phone calls at three in the morning for so long."
"I thought you two made a cute couple," Travis said, finishing off his sandwich.
"And I thought she was mental. What's your point?"
Travis laughed and got up from the table. "You go," he started. "You ask that girl from forensics out. And I'll be at my place with plenty of lager for when she turns you down."
"And you have fun drinking it by yourself," Nicholas shot back. "I hope you're hung over tomorrow on patrol."
The officers had arranged their desks into a large circle-like configuration, thus making the absolute least of the space available in the room.
"Anybody find out what happened to that Weaver kid?" Andrew asked, holding up a forgotten form, date stamped from two months past.
"His aunt took him," Nicholas answered automatically, not even looking up from the form he was busy filling out in triplicate. He held out his hand. "I'll take it." Andrew shrugged and passed the form in Nicholas' direction.
Tony found an unsigned form in his own stack. "What about...Janice Thatcher. Anybody follow up with her, yet?"
Danny tried to lean over, eventually giving up and just getting up and moving closer. "I...think we did. Doris, you went with me, didn't you?"
Doris thought for a moment. "No, love. We're me."
Danny chewed his lip. "No, we didn't. That's right." He sighed and took the form, setting it on his own desk. "She was worried that her sister's daughter's cousin what was supposed to be here for the summer holidays never showed up."
Nicholas looked up at Danny. "Could you be a bit more specific, please?" he asked. "Was this cousin male or female?"
"Male?" Danny tried.
"Check with CSI and forensics and make sure you follow up with Missus Thatcher by Friday." He signed the bottom of his paper, as well as the sheet Andrew had handed him before checking his watch. "I'm calling lunch," he said tiredly. "Everybody take an hour, but keep your radios with you. You're all on call in the event that something should arise."
"Thank fucking god," Andrew said as he got to his feet, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. He pulled two out, pressing them both between his lips and lighting them, before handing one off to Andy.
"And what the hell do you think you're doing?" Nicholas snapped, jumping to his feet. He snatched both cigarettes away, tossing them into a cup of cold tea.
"Fuck, Nick!" Andrew shouted back. "You just said so yourself. We're on lunch!"
"Lunch or not, there is to be no smoking in the building!" Nicholas picked up the tea cup and made his way to the rubbish bin, dumping the contents over the paper that probably should have been in recycle. "I don't care what Frank told you was acceptable, and what infractions he was willing to overlook, but there's to be no smoking in the building. If I catch it again, there will be corrective action, and cake will not be accepted!" He slammed the mug down on the nearest desk and stomped out, slamming the door shut behind him. The rest of the officers stood round in an uncomfortable silence, staring at the floor, or playing with the buttons on their shirts.
"Fucker came back way too early," Andrew said, pulling out two more cigarettes. He handed one to Andy, who slid it behind his ear.
"Think he needs to see a shrink," Andy quipped.
"He needs to up his dosage." Andrew put the unlit cigarette between his lips and walked out of the room, Andy close behind.
"What'd he mean by that?" Tony asked, finally daring to open his desk drawer and retrieve his tin Spider-man lunch box. "Dosage for what?"
Danny shook his head as he picked up his car keys. "Don' worry 'bout it," he said. "Nick'll sort himself out." He wandered out of the courthouse, finding Nicholas standing in the middle of the car park, seemingly not noticing the pouring rain that was currently trying to drown him. "Nick, you're gonna get pneumonia. Get in the car."
Nicholas turned round, startled to see Danny standing behind him. "Right," he said. He wandered over to the Mini, waiting for Danny to unlock the doors. "I never did apologize for wrecking your old car," he said genuinely.
Danny shrugged. "S'all right," he said. "The Jetta were making a funny sound sometimes, anyway, and this one's got a better radio."
Nicholas tried not to laugh as he pulled on his seatbelt. Danny started the ignition, and drove them to Nicholas' cottage, the drive outside the house nothing but mud with some rocks mixed in. They quickly hurried inside, eager to get out of the rain and get a quick lunch. Taking their shoes and jackets off at the door, they made their way to the kitchen, Nicholas going immediately for the fridge.
"How you feeling?" Danny asked nervously.
Nicholas turned round, slightly confused. "Yeah," he said. "I'm fine. Why?"
Danny shrugged as he leaned against the counter. "Just the way you yelled at the Andes, is all," he said.
Nicholas shook his head. "I've told them before not to smoke in the building."
"Just seemed a bit much, is all."
He'd been excused from the stand for a full half hour, but couldn't seem to convince himself to go back to his parents' flat. After sulking around the courthouse for some time, trying to convince himself that he was done with London; that he wouldn't be called back for any more trials or hearings or meetings. Eventually hearing more disorder in the courtroom, he finally stood up and wandered outside, finding himself walking down the road in the direction of the station. He walked in the front doors, nodding curtly to the desk sergeant in the main entrance. For a brief moment, he considered asking Travis if he'd like to go have lunch, but gave up on that idea when he spotted Janine from across the room.
"Janine!" he called, trotting up to her. "Janine, wait."
Janine rounded on him, clutching tightly to a stack of papers. "Nicholas, I'm starting to get the feeling that I'm being stalked. What do you want?"
"Just...talk to me," Nicholas said desperately. "Please."
"Nicholas, I'm busy," she said stiffly. "I wanted to talk months ago, and you had nothing to say."
"Janine..." Nicholas hesitantly took a step closer. "I don't want us to be like this?"
"Like what, Nicholas?" Janine shouted, attracting glances from everybody in the room. "We're done!"
"It's not just that easy," Nicholas said defensively. "You can't just cast everything we had aside."
"You know I'm seeing Dave--"
"It's not about that," Nicholas said. "Really, I'm happy that you've moved on. I just feel like we should talk about what happened."
Janine slammed her stack of papers down on a nearby desk. "What's there to talk about, Nicholas?" she demanded. "Why are you doing this? Why here? Why right now?"
Nicholas stammered for a moment. "I never see you anywhere else," he pointed out. "You're always at a crime scene, or in the lab, or walking from one to the other. I'd just like to get the time of day from you, just once, without feeling like you resent me."
Janine stepped closer to Nicholas. "You're making a scene," she hissed through her teeth. "Why are you doing this?"
"You can't just forget about us," Nicholas said, lowering his voice to match hers. "I've moved on, too, but I just feel like we need to discuss this. What's happened has happened. You need to just grow up and face that!"
Janine slapped him across the face and picked up her papers. "How dare you," she hissed before turning away, leaving Nicholas alone and dumbstruck in the middle of the room. Everyone was staring now, or trying not to. Inhaling deeply, Nicholas looked round the room. He turned to leave, startled to see Travis standing against a desk. Saying nothing, the sergeant walked up to him and gently put his hand on Nicholas' shoulders, guiding him toward the front doors.
"Mind your business, you arseholes," he said over his shoulder. He walked Nicholas out to the curb, giving him a chance to calm down. "You all right?" he asked.
Nicholas rubbed his face with his hands and nodded. "Yeah," he managed, his voice sounding strangled.
Travis pulled him into a light hug. "You can't keep doing this to yourself, love," he said. "This is just her way of dealing." Nicholas nodded against Travis' neck. "Come on. I'll buy you some lunch." Nicholas nodded again as he stood up straight.
"Thanks," he said.
The window had been left open. He wasn't sure if it was by accident, or by habit, but either way, it was nice. The sounds of London whispered through the shades, occasionally getting loud enough for individual sounds to be picked up and understood. These weren't the same sounds that he heard at his shared flat with Travis; these sounds were somehow less threatening. More like what sounds though an open window at eleven in the morning should sound like.
"It's nice to have a proper weekend again," Janine said quietly.
Nicholas looked down at her, his fingers gently drawing circles on her bare shoulder. "Oh?" he said, enjoying the feeling of her soft breathing on his chest.
"I had split days before," Janine explained. "One of my deciding factors for transferring." Nicholas nodded. Somewhere in the distance, he could hear bells ringing, drawing up some dark, hidden feeling of guilt from deep in his chest. "I'd normally be at the station right now," Janine continued.
"I'm normally at church right now," Nicholas said simply, not entirely sure how he felt about that statement.
Janine reached up, her fingers gently rubbing over the gold chain Nicholas wore round his neck. "I didn't realize you were practicing."
Nicholas nodded. "Yeah," he said, drawing Janine closer to himself and kissing her lightly on the top of her head. "I probably won't be missed today, though," he reasoned. "I haven't gone to the same church as my parents in years."
Janine laughed lightly. "You're really serious, aren't you?"
Nicholas twisted his neck to look at her properly. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked. "Be kind of a stupid thing to lie about." He closed his eyes lightly, enjoying the feeling of her fingers against his neck, and eventually his chest.
"I thought you Catholics weren't supposed to do these sinful things before marriage," she said slyly, her fingers lightly moving up and down Nicholas' chest.
Nicholas shrugged. "Well, to be honest, I do enjoy this much more than being in some cold cathedral," he said.
"That's good," Janine said.
"Yeah?" Nicholas smiled and lightly rolled over to his side, moving Janine onto her back, his hand trailing lightly down her side. "I think I could get used to this."
Fandom: Hot Fuzz
Character/s: Like in the film
Word Count (chapter/total): 5,300 / 47,100
Rating: NC-17
Summary/Warnings: A bit more with Travis and Janine.
Always making noises. Regular noises would be acceptable. Noises like the shuffling of papers or a printer going. Even noises like a telephone conversation to mum would be acceptable. But noises like this were not acceptable. There is absolutely, under no circumstances, any reason for the noises that happened in the courthouse that now also doubled as a police station. Noises like shouting and things being slammed against walls and dropped on the floor. With each new noise, the pressure and pain ringing in Nicholas' skull only amplified, making him physically nauseas. Finally, when he could stand no more, he got up from his desk and slowly walked to his office door, pulling it open slowly. He leaned out into the short hall, not immediately seeing the source of the noises. They were definitely coming from the break room. Walking slowly, he made his way to the noises, throwing open the door to the break room. The sudden quick motion only made him feel even more ill, causing him to have to stop and put a bit of pressure on his head with his fingers. After a few moments, it became clear that nobody had noticed him enter, so he had to take matters into his own hands.
"Shut the fuck up!" he shouted over the din.
Andrew had Tony both froze, Tony stuck in a vicious headlock.
"Get 'im offa me!" Tony pleaded.
Andrew jerked Tony to the left before finally letting up.
"There's no excuse for this!" Nicholas shouted at the officers. "You're grown men. You're supposed to be representatives of the community. Instead, you're in here faffing about and wasting time. Don't you have work to do?"
"Fuck, Nick," Andrew said, standing upright and shoving Tony away. "Lighten up, would you?"
"No, I will not!" Nicholas rubbed his temples again, his eyes closed tightly. "Go down to the station and check progress. Both of you." He turned round and spotted Andy, possibly asleep with his feet up on a desk, and a cigarette hanging between his lips. Inhaling deeply, Nicholas stomped up to the detective and snatched the cigarette from him, and tossing it into a cup of tea. "I've told you both a hundred fucking times that there is to be no smoking in the building!" He pushed the back of Andy's chair, jarring him awake as he stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him. He stopped out in the hall, his hands pressed tightly against the sides of his head. After taking a few deep breaths, he managed to make his way to his office, turning out the lights. He walked slowly to the window, drawing the shades as best he could before turning off his computer monitor. Folding his arms over the desk, he put his head down, groaning lightly.
Just breathe.
Calm down and breathe.
Not lifting his head, he felt around for the second drawer in his desk, pulling it slowly open. He gingerly felt around the contents, eventually finding a small bottle of Rizatriptan. He looked up from his desk long enough to get the bottle open and fished one of the tablets out, swallowing it dry. Snapping the lid shut, he tried to drop it back into his desk drawer but missed, gently resting his head back down on the desk.
"He can't just come in here and yell at us like that," Andrew snapped, throwing a paper cup against the wall. "Who the fuck's he think he is?"
"Your inspector?" Tony ventured cautiously.
Andrew growled as he turned away from the sergeant. "We're all under a lot of pressure, here," he said. "He acts like he's the only fucking one does any work round here."
"I ain't going outside to smoke," Andy said simply. "What, and get rained on all fucking day?"
"I'm going in there right now and telling him what's what," Andrew said. "I can tell him exactly what the progress at the station is. Fuck all none."
Tony frowned and shifted slightly as he watched Andrew throw the door open and step out to the hall. He deliberately slammed the door shut behind himself and stomped down the hall to the office Nicholas had made his own. At first, he meant to pound loudly on the door, but then he reconsidered that notion. Even beating the door in would still count as knocking first, so Andrew decided he'd just let himself in. He threw the door open, completely ready to yell and point menacingly and maybe even light up a fag, but had been completely thrown at the lights being off.
"Nick?" he called hesitantly.
"Shut up, go away, and shut the door," Nicholas groaned quietly.
Andrew looked around for the inspector, finding no sign of the man anywhere in the office. It wasn't until he was ready to do what the disembodied voice had told him that he noticed a pair of immaculately shined shoes underneath the desk. Andrew quietly closed the door, stepping up close to the desk. "Nick?" he said again. Stepping round to the back of the desk, he peered underneath it, finding Nicholas curled up on the floor with his eyes closed tightly. "Shit," he said quietly. He noticed the small bottle on the floor near Nicholas' chair, and using his moderately trained detective skills to put two and two together to get five. He picked up the bottle and set it on the desk before getting down to his knees. "Come on, Nick," he said, reaching under the desk.
"Go away," Nicholas repeated.
"Sorry," Andrew said, pulling lightly on Nicholas' arm. Despite his protests, Nicholas got up from the floor. "Come on," Andrew continued. "I'm taking you home."
"Got work to do," Nicholas said.
"And it ain't getting done with you under there, either," he said. "Might as well go home and go to bed." He made sure Nicholas wasn't going to sick all over the floor once he got to his feet, and left him in the office while he walked down to the break room. He slowly pushed the door open, poking his head in.
"You tell that bastard what's what?" Andy asked bitterly.
"Go down to the station with Tony," Andrew said. "I've got to take care of something."
"What could you possibly have to take care of all of a sudden?" Andy demanded.
"None of your fucking business," Andrew snapped. "I'm your DS, now fucking do what I said."
Andy scowled at him as he shut the door before making his way back to Nicholas' office, finding the inspector resting with his head on his desk. "Come on, Nick," he said lightly, helping Nicholas up. "Going home."
"Got work," Nicholas repeated.
"I'll take care of it," Andrew promised. "Let's go." He led Nicholas out to his old Volks Wagen, helping him get settled into the passenger seat. Climbing into the driver's seat, Andrew adjusted the volume knob on his stereo, making sure it didn't blast them out when he turned the ignition. The car started easily, and he backed out of the space, starting on the quick drive to Nicholas' cottage. He was surprised to find Danny's new Mini parked outside. Doing his best to not wonder what on god's green earth Danny was doing at Nicholas' place during the day, he helped the inspector out of the car, and inside, finding Danny making a sandwich in the kitchen.
"Wot's going on?" Danny asked, looking up at the pair.
"Could ask you the same thing," Andrew said, watching Nicholas shuffle back to his bedroom.
"I came here for lunch so I didn't have to go up the steps at my place," Danny said simply. "What's going on with Nick?"
Andrew walked into the kitchen and took a slice of turkey from the package on the counter. "I think he went back to work too early," he said. "Found him sick under his desk."
Danny blinked at Andrew. "He told me he weren't havin' headaches no more," he said.
Andrew leaned up against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. "Wasn't aware he had an issue with them until today," he said. "That what his prescription's for?"
Danny nodded. "He told you?" he asked.
Andrew shook his head. "Found the bottle on the floor in his office." The officers stood silent for a few moments before Andrew finally started making his way toward the front door. "Listen, Nick had some reports he was working on today. I'm gonna take care of those for him today, if he asks."
Danny nodded again. "He'd appreciate that," he agreed. "Be sure to send him a copy in his email. He likes to keep all of them for some reason."
"Right." Andrew nodded and let himself out, leaving Danny to finish making his lunch. Danny cleaned up after himself and put the kettle on the stove, figuring Nicholas might like some tea. He took his sandwich into the living room and settled down on the sofa. He could hear Nicholas moving around in the bedroom, changing out of his uniform and getting into bed. For several moments, Danny considered turning on the telly, but decided against it, on the very real chance that even the flashing lights from the screen would upset Nicholas. Instead, he ate his lunch in silence, until the kettle on the stove started to whistle. Danny got up as quickly as possible and took it off the stove, making up a cup for each of them; Danny's mug with four sugars Nicholas' with one. He took the cup into Nicholas' bedroom, setting it lightly down on the inspector's night stand.
"Thought you might want some," he said lightly when he noticed Nicholas was awake. "How you feel?"
"Like I'm gonna die," Nicholas said simply.
Danny frowned and leaned over the bed, pulling shut the shades. "Try to get some sleep," he said, bending down and lightly kissing Nicholas on the forehead. He left the tea on the night stand and left the room, quietly closing the door behind himself. Checking his watch, he saw that he had just barely enough time to get back to the courthouse before being late; not that anyone was keeping track. He made sure all the lights in the cottage were out and let himself out, making sure that the doors were locked.
"Inspector, do you remember what time it was when you stopped to get petrol?"
Nicholas thought for a moment. "No, I don't," he said. "I'm sorry. It was before dawn, though. I do remember that."
"You weren't wearing a watch?" the attorney asked.
"No, I was," Nicholas said. "But I didn't think to check what the time was. I wasn't exactly working on a schedule."
"Okay," the attorney said slowly. "Do you remember where you stopped off?"
"It was in Bufford Abbey," Nicholas said. "No, wait. It was in Heston." Nicholas shifted in his seat. He'd done these things dozens of times before. Why should this one be any different? And why did this guy make him so nervous?
"Was it Bufford Abbey, or was it Heston?" the attorney asked. "There's a considerable distance between the two."
"It was Heston," Nicholas said.
"Are you certain, Inspector?"
Nicholas paused a moment. "Yes," he said. He bit his lip and inhaled deeply. Just calm down and concentrate.
"You weren't seen again in Sandford until eight in the morning," the attorney said. "And if you say you left Sandford 'around two-ish', that's a lot of time unaccounted for. "How did you know where to find everybody if you'd been gone for so long?"
"It's a small town," Nicholas pointed out. "And the Village of the Year judges were there. Everyone was on the high street."
The attorney looked at Nicholas for a few moments. "And what of the other officers?" he asked.
"They were at the station," Nicholas said simply. "I'm sorry, what does any of this have to do with anything?"
The judge looked down at Nicholas. "I'd like to know the same thing, Mr. Baker."
The attorney took a few steps closer to the stand. "I'm simply trying to show that Inspector Angel was gone for an extended amount of time," he said. "That's a lot of time during which he may not have had the opportunity to get the full story or series of events."
"What's not to get?" Nicholas asked. "There was a street full of people shooting at me."
"Earlier you said that, quote, 'everyone was on the high street'," Mr. Baker said. "Are you to imply that 'everyone' then was shooting at you, since 'a street full of people' were shooting at you."
Nicholas shook his head. "No," he insisted. "I...That's not..."
"That's enough, Mr. Baker," the judge said finally. "Inspector, you can step down."
Nicholas nodded. "Thank you," he said. He made his way back out to the hall, finding Travis waiting for him.
"How'd it go?" he asked.
Nicholas leaned his head against Travis' shoulder. Fuck image. "I'd have sworn I was the one on trial in there," he said.
Travis shook his head, placing his hand on Nicholas' shoulder. "Come on," he said. "Let's go home."
He led Nicholas down the hall and outside. As they walked to the bus stop, Nicholas slowly pulled his tie off, rolling it carefully before putting it in his pocket as Travis reached up and unfastened Nicholas' top button on his shirt. The bus pulled up to the curb in a fit of excellent timing, and the two men got on, Travis paying for both their fares. The ride home was quick, at least, and a good alternative to walking in occasional and sudden downpours.
Once upstairs in Travis' flat, Nicholas pulled his jacket off, hanging it on the hook next to his uniform jacket.
"You hungry?" Travis asked lightly, picking up the phone. "I'm thinking Chinese."
"Whatever you want," Nicholas responded dully, letting himself fall onto the sofa. Kicking off his shoes, he stretched out over the cushions and reached for the remote, forgetting that daytime telly in London was the same boring nonsense as daytime telly in Sandford. He watched David Dickson's technicolour glasses bounce around the screen while Travis placed his order on the phone, seemingly getting one of everything from the menu. Eventually, he hung up, and pushed Nicholas' feet off of the sofa.
"Just move right in," he said as Nicholas sat up. "Anything good on?"
Nicholas handed over the remote and leaned his head against Travis' shoulder. "Bargain Hunt, or some BBC special on boys with eating disorders," Nicholas answered flatly.
Travis considered this. "How old are the boys?" he asked.
"Twelve?"
Travis frowned and began flipping through channels, eventually settling on an afternoon news programme. The two of them sat together with a comfortable silence between them, Travis' fingers lightly tracing the contour of Nicholas' shoulder. "Lunch should be here soon," he said after a few minutes. "Got you some noodles."
"Thanks," Nicholas said quietly. He sighed lightly.
"How you doing?" Travis asked, looking down at him. "Do you need your pills?"
Nicholas shook his head. "No," he said. "Just tired."
Travis sighed lightly and gently stroked Nicholas' head. "Then we'll stay in tonight."
Danny stood on the platform, waiting eagerly for Nicholas to just hurry up and get off the fucking train already. When he did finally emerge from the crowd, Danny tried to bounce up and down, felt a sharp pull in his side, and leaned against the wall instead.
"You all right?" Nicholas asked, reaching out toward Danny.
"Yeah," Danny said, nodding. "Got too excited, is all." He forced a strained smile at Nicholas before leading the way to the car. Nicholas tossed his bag in the back seat and climbed into the passenger seat, watching as Danny slid into the car and started the ignition. "How was everything?" he asked, his voice sounding forced.
"I can't wait until it's all over with," Nicholas said. "They're just drawing this whole mess out longer than they should."
Danny nodded stiffly. "Right," he said. He hated talking about the trial, and thinking about all the people that were involved, and knew he shouldn't have asked. "That...guy you're staying with," he said slowly.
"Travis?" Nicholas filled in. "He's an old friend. What about him?"
Danny kept his eyes glued to the road. "I met him, and he seemed nice and all, but I know you two..."
Nicholas sighed and twisted slightly to look at Danny. "Yes," Nicholas said. "And I told you that. It was just something casual."
Danny chewed his lip. "Is it... still something casual?" he asked nervously.
"No." Nicholas said simply. "That was an agreement we made back when we were both PCs." He reached out and put a gentle hand on Danny's arm. "But if it makes you that uncomfortable, I'll start staying with my parents."
Danny glanced over at Nicholas. "You don't have to," he said.
"No, but you want me to," Nicholas said simply."
There was a brief silence. "Yeah." Danny was embarrassed to admit it, but Nicholas was right.
"Then I'll stay with my parents from now on." He smiled at Danny as he leaned back into his seat. "I'll need to stop by Travis' and get my stuff, though. Some things don't travel well, so I just left them there."
"Of course," Danny said, already feeling better about the situation. For everything else, he knew he could always trust Nicholas to not lie to him over something important. He'd caught him lying about other things, but they were small things, where the lies had made Danny feel better about still being in hospital.
"I'm gonna ask her out."
Travis looked up from his lunch, surprised to see Nicholas leaning over him. "Who?" he asked, swallowing quickly. "The girl from forensics?"
Nicholas nodded. "Yeah," Nicholas said. He sat down, plucking a piece of lettuce from Travis' plate. "Do you think I should?"
"I think you should get your own lunch," Travis said, pulling his plate away. "I thought you'd given up on women."
"No," Nicholas clarified. "I took a break from women after Darla. A man can only handle accusing phone calls at three in the morning for so long."
"I thought you two made a cute couple," Travis said, finishing off his sandwich.
"And I thought she was mental. What's your point?"
Travis laughed and got up from the table. "You go," he started. "You ask that girl from forensics out. And I'll be at my place with plenty of lager for when she turns you down."
"And you have fun drinking it by yourself," Nicholas shot back. "I hope you're hung over tomorrow on patrol."
The officers had arranged their desks into a large circle-like configuration, thus making the absolute least of the space available in the room.
"Anybody find out what happened to that Weaver kid?" Andrew asked, holding up a forgotten form, date stamped from two months past.
"His aunt took him," Nicholas answered automatically, not even looking up from the form he was busy filling out in triplicate. He held out his hand. "I'll take it." Andrew shrugged and passed the form in Nicholas' direction.
Tony found an unsigned form in his own stack. "What about...Janice Thatcher. Anybody follow up with her, yet?"
Danny tried to lean over, eventually giving up and just getting up and moving closer. "I...think we did. Doris, you went with me, didn't you?"
Doris thought for a moment. "No, love. We're me."
Danny chewed his lip. "No, we didn't. That's right." He sighed and took the form, setting it on his own desk. "She was worried that her sister's daughter's cousin what was supposed to be here for the summer holidays never showed up."
Nicholas looked up at Danny. "Could you be a bit more specific, please?" he asked. "Was this cousin male or female?"
"Male?" Danny tried.
"Check with CSI and forensics and make sure you follow up with Missus Thatcher by Friday." He signed the bottom of his paper, as well as the sheet Andrew had handed him before checking his watch. "I'm calling lunch," he said tiredly. "Everybody take an hour, but keep your radios with you. You're all on call in the event that something should arise."
"Thank fucking god," Andrew said as he got to his feet, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. He pulled two out, pressing them both between his lips and lighting them, before handing one off to Andy.
"And what the hell do you think you're doing?" Nicholas snapped, jumping to his feet. He snatched both cigarettes away, tossing them into a cup of cold tea.
"Fuck, Nick!" Andrew shouted back. "You just said so yourself. We're on lunch!"
"Lunch or not, there is to be no smoking in the building!" Nicholas picked up the tea cup and made his way to the rubbish bin, dumping the contents over the paper that probably should have been in recycle. "I don't care what Frank told you was acceptable, and what infractions he was willing to overlook, but there's to be no smoking in the building. If I catch it again, there will be corrective action, and cake will not be accepted!" He slammed the mug down on the nearest desk and stomped out, slamming the door shut behind him. The rest of the officers stood round in an uncomfortable silence, staring at the floor, or playing with the buttons on their shirts.
"Fucker came back way too early," Andrew said, pulling out two more cigarettes. He handed one to Andy, who slid it behind his ear.
"Think he needs to see a shrink," Andy quipped.
"He needs to up his dosage." Andrew put the unlit cigarette between his lips and walked out of the room, Andy close behind.
"What'd he mean by that?" Tony asked, finally daring to open his desk drawer and retrieve his tin Spider-man lunch box. "Dosage for what?"
Danny shook his head as he picked up his car keys. "Don' worry 'bout it," he said. "Nick'll sort himself out." He wandered out of the courthouse, finding Nicholas standing in the middle of the car park, seemingly not noticing the pouring rain that was currently trying to drown him. "Nick, you're gonna get pneumonia. Get in the car."
Nicholas turned round, startled to see Danny standing behind him. "Right," he said. He wandered over to the Mini, waiting for Danny to unlock the doors. "I never did apologize for wrecking your old car," he said genuinely.
Danny shrugged. "S'all right," he said. "The Jetta were making a funny sound sometimes, anyway, and this one's got a better radio."
Nicholas tried not to laugh as he pulled on his seatbelt. Danny started the ignition, and drove them to Nicholas' cottage, the drive outside the house nothing but mud with some rocks mixed in. They quickly hurried inside, eager to get out of the rain and get a quick lunch. Taking their shoes and jackets off at the door, they made their way to the kitchen, Nicholas going immediately for the fridge.
"How you feeling?" Danny asked nervously.
Nicholas turned round, slightly confused. "Yeah," he said. "I'm fine. Why?"
Danny shrugged as he leaned against the counter. "Just the way you yelled at the Andes, is all," he said.
Nicholas shook his head. "I've told them before not to smoke in the building."
"Just seemed a bit much, is all."
He'd been excused from the stand for a full half hour, but couldn't seem to convince himself to go back to his parents' flat. After sulking around the courthouse for some time, trying to convince himself that he was done with London; that he wouldn't be called back for any more trials or hearings or meetings. Eventually hearing more disorder in the courtroom, he finally stood up and wandered outside, finding himself walking down the road in the direction of the station. He walked in the front doors, nodding curtly to the desk sergeant in the main entrance. For a brief moment, he considered asking Travis if he'd like to go have lunch, but gave up on that idea when he spotted Janine from across the room.
"Janine!" he called, trotting up to her. "Janine, wait."
Janine rounded on him, clutching tightly to a stack of papers. "Nicholas, I'm starting to get the feeling that I'm being stalked. What do you want?"
"Just...talk to me," Nicholas said desperately. "Please."
"Nicholas, I'm busy," she said stiffly. "I wanted to talk months ago, and you had nothing to say."
"Janine..." Nicholas hesitantly took a step closer. "I don't want us to be like this?"
"Like what, Nicholas?" Janine shouted, attracting glances from everybody in the room. "We're done!"
"It's not just that easy," Nicholas said defensively. "You can't just cast everything we had aside."
"You know I'm seeing Dave--"
"It's not about that," Nicholas said. "Really, I'm happy that you've moved on. I just feel like we should talk about what happened."
Janine slammed her stack of papers down on a nearby desk. "What's there to talk about, Nicholas?" she demanded. "Why are you doing this? Why here? Why right now?"
Nicholas stammered for a moment. "I never see you anywhere else," he pointed out. "You're always at a crime scene, or in the lab, or walking from one to the other. I'd just like to get the time of day from you, just once, without feeling like you resent me."
Janine stepped closer to Nicholas. "You're making a scene," she hissed through her teeth. "Why are you doing this?"
"You can't just forget about us," Nicholas said, lowering his voice to match hers. "I've moved on, too, but I just feel like we need to discuss this. What's happened has happened. You need to just grow up and face that!"
Janine slapped him across the face and picked up her papers. "How dare you," she hissed before turning away, leaving Nicholas alone and dumbstruck in the middle of the room. Everyone was staring now, or trying not to. Inhaling deeply, Nicholas looked round the room. He turned to leave, startled to see Travis standing against a desk. Saying nothing, the sergeant walked up to him and gently put his hand on Nicholas' shoulders, guiding him toward the front doors.
"Mind your business, you arseholes," he said over his shoulder. He walked Nicholas out to the curb, giving him a chance to calm down. "You all right?" he asked.
Nicholas rubbed his face with his hands and nodded. "Yeah," he managed, his voice sounding strangled.
Travis pulled him into a light hug. "You can't keep doing this to yourself, love," he said. "This is just her way of dealing." Nicholas nodded against Travis' neck. "Come on. I'll buy you some lunch." Nicholas nodded again as he stood up straight.
"Thanks," he said.
The window had been left open. He wasn't sure if it was by accident, or by habit, but either way, it was nice. The sounds of London whispered through the shades, occasionally getting loud enough for individual sounds to be picked up and understood. These weren't the same sounds that he heard at his shared flat with Travis; these sounds were somehow less threatening. More like what sounds though an open window at eleven in the morning should sound like.
"It's nice to have a proper weekend again," Janine said quietly.
Nicholas looked down at her, his fingers gently drawing circles on her bare shoulder. "Oh?" he said, enjoying the feeling of her soft breathing on his chest.
"I had split days before," Janine explained. "One of my deciding factors for transferring." Nicholas nodded. Somewhere in the distance, he could hear bells ringing, drawing up some dark, hidden feeling of guilt from deep in his chest. "I'd normally be at the station right now," Janine continued.
"I'm normally at church right now," Nicholas said simply, not entirely sure how he felt about that statement.
Janine reached up, her fingers gently rubbing over the gold chain Nicholas wore round his neck. "I didn't realize you were practicing."
Nicholas nodded. "Yeah," he said, drawing Janine closer to himself and kissing her lightly on the top of her head. "I probably won't be missed today, though," he reasoned. "I haven't gone to the same church as my parents in years."
Janine laughed lightly. "You're really serious, aren't you?"
Nicholas twisted his neck to look at her properly. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked. "Be kind of a stupid thing to lie about." He closed his eyes lightly, enjoying the feeling of her fingers against his neck, and eventually his chest.
"I thought you Catholics weren't supposed to do these sinful things before marriage," she said slyly, her fingers lightly moving up and down Nicholas' chest.
Nicholas shrugged. "Well, to be honest, I do enjoy this much more than being in some cold cathedral," he said.
"That's good," Janine said.
"Yeah?" Nicholas smiled and lightly rolled over to his side, moving Janine onto her back, his hand trailing lightly down her side. "I think I could get used to this."